Movies and TV series about small towns

The 60 best titles about small towns, ranked by the iRank Score — our composite of IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic and TMDb. Every page includes cast, where to watch and similar recommendations.

It's a Wonderful Life
iRank88
1946 · Frank Capra
MovieDramaFamilyFantasy
George Bailey has spent his entire life giving to the people of Bedford Falls. All that prevents rich skinflint Mr. Potter from taking over the entire town is George's modest building and loan compan
Once Upon a Time in the West
iRank87
1968 · Sergio Leone
MovieDramaWestern
As the railroad builders advance unstoppably through the Arizona desert on their way to the sea, Jill arrives in the small town of Flagstone with the intention of starting a new life.
Rio Bravo
iRank87
1959 · Howard Hawks
MovieDramaWestern
A small-town sheriff in the American West enlists the help of a disabled man, a drunk, and a young gunfighter in his efforts to hold in jail the brother of the local bad guy.
Gravity Falls
iRank86
2012
SeriesAction & AdventureAnimationComedy
Twin brother and sister Dipper and Mabel Pines are in for an unexpected adventure when they spend the summer helping their great uncle Stan run a tourist trap in the mysterious town of Gravity Falls,
Stranger Things
iRank86
2016 · Curtis Gwinn
SeriesAction & AdventureMysterySci-Fi & Fantasy
When a young boy vanishes, a small town uncovers a mystery involving secret experiments, terrifying supernatural forces, and one strange little girl.
The Iron Giant
iRank86
1999 · Brad Bird
MovieAnimationDramaFamily
In the small town of Rockwell, Maine in October 1957, a giant metal machine befriends a nine-year-old boy and ultimately finds its humanity by unselfishly saving people from their own fears and prejud
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
iRank85
2017 · Martin McDonagh
MovieCrimeDrama
After seven months have passed without a culprit in her daughter's murder case, Mildred Hayes makes a bold move, painting three signs leading into her town with a controversial message directed at Bil
Dangal
iRank84
2016 · Nitesh Tiwari
MovieComedyDramaFamily
Dangal is an extraordinary true story based on the life of Mahavir Singh and his two daughters, Geeta and Babita Phogat. The film traces the inspirational journey of a father who trains his daughters
FROM
iRank84
2022 · Josh Appelbaum
SeriesDramaMysterySci-Fi & Fantasy
Unravel the mystery of a nightmarish town in middle America that traps all those who enter. As the unwilling residents fight to keep a sense of normalcy and search for a way out, they must also surviv
Dark
iRank84
2017 · Quirin Berg
SeriesCrimeDramaMystery
A missing child sets four families on a frantic hunt for answers as they unearth a mind-bending mystery that spans three generations.
Riverdale
iRank84
2017 · Jon Goldwater
SeriesCrimeDramaMystery
Set in the present, the series offers a bold, subversive take on Archie, Betty, Veronica and their friends, exploring the surreality of small-town life, the darkness and weirdness bubbling beneath Riv
The Deer Hunter
iRank84
1978 · Michael Cimino
MovieDramaWar
Three steelworkers enlist in the army and are sent to Vietnam, one leaving behind a rushed marriage, the others a shared love. What they encounter during the war changes their lives forever.
Twin Peaks
iRank84
1990 · Sabrina S. Sutherland
SeriesDramaMystery
The body of Laura Palmer is washed up on a beach near the small Washington state town of Twin Peaks. FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper is called in to investigate her strange demise only to uncover a web
Mother
iRank83
2009 · Bong Joon Ho
MovieCrimeDramaMystery
A mother lives quietly with her son. One day, a girl is brutally killed, and the boy is charged with the murder. Now, it's his mother's mission to prove him innocent.
Klaus
iRank82
2019 · Sergio Pablos
MovieAnimationComedyFamily
A selfish postman and a reclusive toymaker form an unlikely friendship, delivering joy to a cold, dark town that desperately needs it.
Sex Education
iRank82
2019 · Clare Couchman
SeriesComedyDrama
Inexperienced Otis channels his sex therapist mom when he teams up with rebellious Maeve to set up an underground sex therapy clinic at school.
IT: Welcome to Derry
iRank82
2025 · Barbara Muschietti
SeriesDramaMystery
In 1962, amid a spate of unexplained disappearances of local children, a group of misfit friends begin to suspect a long-buried ancient evil lurking. As the kids set out to determine what's really goi
Mare of Easttown
iRank82
2021 · Paul Lee
SeriesCrimeDramaMystery
A detective in a small Pennsylvania town investigates a local murder while trying to keep her life from falling apart.
Normal People
iRank81
2020 · Anna Ferguson
SeriesDrama
Marianne and Connell weave in and out of each other's lives in this exploration of sex, power and the desire to love and be loved.
Edward Scissorhands
iRank81
1990 · Tim Burton
MovieDramaFantasyRomance
A small suburban town receives a visit from a castaway unfinished science experiment named Edward.
Bates Motel
iRank81
2013 · Vera Farmiga
SeriesCrimeDramaMystery
A "contemporary prequel" to the 1960 film Psycho, depicting the life of Norman Bates and his mother Norma prior to the events portrayed in Hitchcock's film, albeit in a different fictional town and in
Weapons
iRank80
2025 · Zach Cregger
MovieHorrorMystery
When all but one child from the same class mysteriously vanish on the same night at exactly the same time, a community is left questioning who or what is behind their disappearance.
Blue Velvet
iRank80
1986 · David Lynch
MovieCrimeMysteryThriller
The discovery of a severed human ear found in a field leads a young man on an investigation related to a beautiful, mysterious nightclub singer and a group of psychopathic criminals who have kidnapped
Lolita
iRank79
1962 · Stanley Kubrick
MovieComedyDrama
Humbert Humbert is a middle-aged British novelist who is both appalled by and attracted to the vulgarity of American culture. When he comes to stay at the boarding house run by Charlotte Haze, he soon
That '70s Show
iRank79
1998
SeriesComedyDramaFamily
Crank up the 8-track and flash back to a time when platform shoes and puka shells were all the rage in this hilarious retro-sitcom. For Eric, Kelso, Jackie, Hyde, Donna and Fez, a group of high school
Broadchurch
iRank79
2013
SeriesCrimeDramaMystery
The murder of a young boy in a small coastal town brings a media frenzy, which threatens to tear the community apart.
A History of Violence
iRank79
2005 · David Cronenberg
MovieCrimeDramaThriller
An average family is thrust into the spotlight after the father commits a seemingly self-defense murder at his diner.
Gilmore Girls
iRank79
2000
SeriesComedyDrama
Set in the charming town of Stars Hollow, Connecticut, the series follows the captivating lives of Lorelai and Rory Gilmore, a mother/daughter pair who have a relationship most people only dream of.
Virgin River
iRank79
2019
SeriesDrama
After seeing an ad for a midwife, a recently divorced big-city nurse moves to the redwood forests of California, where she meets an intriguing man.
Insomnia
iRank78
2002 · Christopher Nolan
MovieCrimeDramaThriller
Two Los Angeles homicide detectives are dispatched to a northern town where the sun doesn't set to investigate the methodical murder of a local teen.
When Evil Lurks
iRank78
2023 · Demián Rugna
MovieHorrorThriller
When brothers Pedro and Jimi discover that a demonic infection has been festering in a nearby farmhouse, they attempt to evict the victim from their land. Failing to adhere to the proper rites of exor
Schitt's Creek
iRank78
2015 · David West Read
SeriesComedy
Formerly filthy rich video store magnate Johnny Rose, his soap star wife Moira, and their two kids, über-hipster son David and socialite daughter Alexis, suddenly find themselves broke and forced to l
Locke & Key
iRank78
2020
SeriesDramaMysterySci-Fi & Fantasy
After their dad's murder, three siblings move with their mom to his ancestral estate, where they discover magical keys that unlock powers — and secrets.
Rebel Ridge
iRank77
2024 · Jeremy Saulnier
MovieActionCrimeDrama
A former Marine confronts corruption in a small town when local law enforcement unjustly seizes the bag of cash he needs to post his cousin's bail.
My Cousin Vinny
iRank77
1992 · Jonathan Lynn
MovieComedyDrama
Two carefree pals traveling through rural Alabama on their way back to college are mistakenly arrested and charged with murder. Fortunately, one of them has a cousin who's a lawyer - Vincent Gambini,
True Blood
iRank76
2008 · Brian Buckner
SeriesDramaMysterySci-Fi & Fantasy
Thanks to a Japanese scientist's invention of synthetic blood, vampires have progressed overnight from legendary monsters to fellow citizens. And while humans have been safely removed from the menu, m
Little Children
iRank76
2006 · Todd Field
MovieDramaRomance
The lives of two lovelorn spouses from separate marriages, a registered sex offender, and a disgraced ex-police officer intersect as they struggle to resist their vulnerabilities and temptations.
Gremlins
iRank76
1984 · Joe Dante
MovieComedyFantasyHorror
After receiving an exotic small animal as a Christmas gift, a young man inadvertently breaks three important rules concerning his new pet, which unleashes a horde of malevolently mischievous creatures
It
iRank75
2017 · Andy Muschietti
MovieDramaHorrorThriller
In a small town in Maine, seven children known as The Losers Club come face to face with life problems, bullies and a monster that takes the shape of a clown called Pennywise.
Haven
iRank75
2010 · Gabrielle Stanton
SeriesDramaMysterySci-Fi & Fantasy
FBI agent Audrey Parker arrives in the small town of Haven, Maine to solve a murder and soon discovers the town's many secrets—which also hold the key to unlocking the mysteries of her lost past.
Tremors
iRank75
1990 · Ron Underwood
MovieActionComedyHorror
Val McKee and Earl Bassett are in a fight for their lives when they discover that their desolate town has been infested with gigantic, man-eating creatures that live below the ground.
Jericho
iRank74
2006
SeriesAction & AdventureDramaMystery
Jericho is an American action/drama series that centers on the residents of the fictional town of Jericho, Kansas, in the aftermath of nuclear attacks on 23 major cities in the contiguous United State
Easy A
iRank74
2010 · Will Gluck
MovieComedy
Olive, an average high school student, sees her below-the-radar existence turn around overnight once she decides to use the school's gossip grapevine to advance her social standing. Now her classmates
Cape Fear
iRank74
1991 · Martin Scorsese
MovieCrimeDramaThriller
Sam Bowden is a small-town corporate attorney. Max Cady is a tattooed, cigar-smoking, Bible-quoting, psychotic rapist. What do they have in common? 14 years ago, Sam was a public defender assigned to
Sleepy Hollow
iRank74
2013 · M. Raven Metzner
SeriesDramaMysterySci-Fi & Fantasy
Ichabod Crane is resurrected and pulled two and a half centuries through time to unravel a mystery that dates all the way back to the founding fathers.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
iRank74
1996 · Gary Trousdale
MovieDramaAnimationFamily
Isolated bell-ringer Quasimodo wishes to leave Notre Dame tower against the wishes of Judge Claude Frollo, his stern guardian and Paris' strait-laced Minister of Justice. His first venture to the outs
The Outsider
iRank74
2020 · Marty Bowen
SeriesCrimeDramaMystery
When an insidious supernatural force edges its way into a seemingly straightforward investigation into the gruesome murder of a young boy, it leads a seasoned cop and an unorthodox investigator to que
Scream
iRank74
1996 · Wes Craven
MovieCrimeHorrorMystery
A year after the murder of her mother, a teenage girl is terrorized by a masked killer who targets her and her friends by using scary movies as part of a deadly game.
Run
iRank73
2020 · Aneesh Chaganty
MovieDramaHorrorThriller
Chloe, a teenager who is confined to a wheelchair, is homeschooled by her mother, Diane. Chloe soon becomes suspicious of her mother and begins to suspect that she may be harboring a dark secret.
Dawson's Creek
iRank73
1998
SeriesDramaSoap
Dawson's Creek is an American teen drama that portrays the fictional lives of a close-knit group of teenagers through high school and college.
The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun
iRank73
2021 · Wes Anderson
MovieComedyDrama
The staff of an American magazine based in France puts out its last issue, with stories featuring an artist sentenced to life imprisonment, student riots, and a kidnapping resolved by a chef.
The Black Phone
iRank72
2022 · Scott Derrickson
MovieHorrorThriller
Finney Blake, a shy but clever 13-year-old boy, is abducted by a sadistic killer and trapped in a soundproof basement where screaming is of little use. When a disconnected phone on the wall begins to
Slither
iRank72
2006 · James Gunn
MovieComedyHorrorScience Fiction
A small town is taken over by an alien plague, turning residents into zombies and all forms of mutant monsters.
A Simple Favor
iRank72
2018 · Paul Feig
MovieComedyMysteryThriller
Stephanie, a dedicated mother and popular vlogger, befriends Emily, a mysterious upper-class woman whose son Nicky attends the same school as Miles, Stephanie's son. When Emily asks her to pick Nicky
Under the Dome
iRank71
2013 · Steven Spielberg
SeriesDramaMysterySci-Fi & Fantasy
A small town is suddenly and inexplicably sealed off from the rest of the world by an enormous transparent dome. While military forces, the government and the media positioned outside of this surround
Puss in Boots
iRank71
2011 · Chris Miller
MovieActionAdventureAnimation
Long before he even met Shrek, the notorious fighter, lover and outlaw Puss in Boots becomes a hero when he sets off on an adventure with the tough and street smart Kitty Softpaws and the mastermind H
The Lost Boys
iRank71
1987 · Joel Schumacher
MovieComedyDramaHorror
When an unsuspecting town newcomer is drawn to local blood fiends, the Frog brothers and other unlikely heroes gear up to rescue him.
Sleepy Hollow
iRank71
1999 · Tim Burton
MovieFantasyHorrorMystery
Skeptical young detective Ichabod Crane gets transferred to the hamlet of Sleepy Hollow, New York, where he is tasked with investigating the decapitations of three people – murders the townsfolk attri
Palmer
iRank70
2021 · Fisher Stevens
MovieDrama
After 12 years in prison, former high school football star Eddie Palmer returns home to put his life back together—and forms an unlikely bond with Sam, an outcast boy from a troubled home. But Eddie's
Wayward Pines
iRank69
2015 · M. Night Shyamalan
SeriesDramaMysterySci-Fi & Fantasy
Imagine the perfect American town... beautiful homes, manicured lawns, children playing safely in the streets. Now imagine never being able to leave. You have no communication with the outside world.